William Strother, of 'Orange'

William Strother of "Stafford," was named to distinguish him from his nephew, William Strother, son of his brother, Francis Strother, of St. Mark's Parish, and Susanna Dabney, and this nephew was afterwards known as William Strother of "Orange."

William Dabney Strother was born 30 April 1726 at Hanover County, Virginia, the son of Francis Thornton Strother and Susannah Dabney Strother. They had married in 1752.

William's first wife was Sarah Bailey, who was the widow of William Pannill. At the time of the death of Francis Strother, the family were members of St. Thomas Parish of Orange County. (William was then 25.)

William and his wife, "Mrs. Pannill," were the grandparents of President Zachary Taylor.[6] Their daughter Sarah and her husband, Col. Richard Taylor, were the parents of President Taylor.[1] President Zachary Taylor's daughter, Sarah, was the first wife of President Jefferson Davis.[1]

In 1775 he married Ann Cave, the widow of Philemon Kavanaugh.

William died 5 November 1808 and is buried at the Coleman Homestead Burial Ground in Versailles, Woodford County, Kentucky.

Biography

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Strother-138

William Dabney Strother William Strother "of St. Mark's"[1] or "of Orange"

Origin

William was born at St Mark's Parish, Spotsylvania County, Virginia Colony, c. 1715. He was a son of Francis Strother of St. Mark's, and Susannah Dabney.[1] Birth date is a guess, based on other known dates - (for instance his wife married as her 1st in 1735 to Wm Pannill).

Note: William is reported to have been born April 30, 1726 at Hanover, Virginia, without documentation.[citation needed] However, the article on the Strother family, published in the Register of Kentucky State Historical Society, does not report a birth date for William.[1] The fire in Richmond, on 3 April 1865, destroyed all vital records stored by Hanover County.[2]

Marriage(s)

William married twice.

William married by 1752, as his 1st, and as her 2nd, to Sarah (Baily/Bayley) Pannill, widow of William Pannill.[1] Her will was proved in 1774.[1] William Pannill's will was executed on 25 November 1749.[3]
Records show that on February 20, 1752, Culpeper County, dower was assigned Mrs. Sarah Strother, widow of William Pannill.[3] At this time, her husband William Strother qualified as guardian of "orphans" Pannill: Samuel, William, John, Joseph, Frances, and David.[3] Sarah's will was probated in 1774 at Culpeper County, Virginia.[1]

William Strother married on 11 June 1775 at Orange County, Virginia, as his 2nd, to Anne (Cave) Kavennaugh/ Cavanaugh, widow of Philemon Cavenaugh.[4] They removed c. 1800 to their farm at Woodford County, Kentucky with daughter Susannah and her four Hawkins children. William died at the farm, and his will was recorded at Versailles, Kentucky.[4]

Children

Children of William and Sarah (order of the children's births is uncertain):[1][4] by Kentucky Historical Society

1. William Dabney Strother
2. Susanna Strother; mar 1) on 3 Mar 1770 to Capt. Moses Hawkins (d 4 Oct 1777), 2) Thomas Coleman
3. Sarah Strother; mar Col. Richard Taylor

Also mentioned in the will of Sarah (Bayley) Pannill Strother (proved in 1774), as "their children" (actually daughter of Sarah and William Pannill and son-in-law ?): William Dabney, Frances, Gerard Banks, Sarah, and Susanna.[1] Similarly their four children are reported as: William Dabney, Frances Banks, Sarah, and Susannah.[3] Frances Strother and Gerard Banks.[1]

Note: Gerard Banks married to Frances Pannill. The will of Gerard Banks, Jr, dated 9 Apr 1767, left his estate to his wife, Frances, and their unborn child. If they died, estate to go to mother-in-law Sarah Strother. One of the witnesses was "W. Pannill."[5]

Please also see Research Notes in the profile for Sarah (Bayley) Pannill Strother for more on the children.

Death and Legacy

William died on 25 Nov 1808 at his farm at Woodford County, Kentucky.[4]

Col Richard Taylor and his son, Hancock Taylor, were the executors of the will of William Strother, of Orange.[4]

Register of Kentucky State Historical Society, by Kentucky Historical Society. (Publication date 1903). Page 67-68. < Archive.Org >

William Strother of "Orange," whose name appears in the table above was one of the sons of Francis Strother of "St. Mark's Parish" and Susanna Dabney. He was twice married, his first wife being the widow Pannill, whose maiden name was Sarah Bailey, a relative of the Banks and Dabney families. Those who knew her said that she possessed unusual intellectual powers and many other charms that gave her a commanding position among her friends and acquaintances. By this marriage were three children, viz. :

1. "William Dabney Strother
2. Susanna Strother and
3. Sarah Strother.

William Dabney Strother was a young man of splendid intellectual attainments who cast his lot with the Revolutionary forces and became an officer in the regiment commanded by his brother-in-law, Col. Bichard Taylor, and lost his life at the battle of Guilfords Court House.

His sister, Susanna Strother, married Captain Moses Hawkins, March 3, 1770, who lost his life at the battle of Germantown, October 4, 1777. Their names appear in the table above and they were the great-grandparents of Wm. Edward Bailey.

Sarah Strother, sister of Susanna and youngest of the children of William Strother of "Orange" and Sarah Bailey Pannill, married Col. Bichard Taylor of the 9th Virginia regiment and they were the parents of General Zachary Taylor, who became President, 1849. General Zach Taylor had a son who was famous in the cause of the Confederacy and wrote a history of the Civil War that was very popular. He also had a daughter who was the first wife of Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy. Col Bichard Taylor and his son, Hancock, were the executors of the will of William Strother of "Orange," who died on his farm in Woodford Co., Ky., ami his will is of record in the county clerk's office at Versailles. He came to Kentucky to reside about 1800 or soon thereafter, in the company of his second wife, Anna Kavanaugh and his daughter, Susanna, with her four Hawkins children.

As the given names of so many of the Strothers were the same, for the purpose of distinguishing them, especially as regards business relations, they were designated as William of "Stafford," William of ' * Orange, ' ' Francis of ' ' St. Marks, ' ' &.C., giving their county or country seat as the case may be. William of "Stafford" was a brother of Francis of "St. Marks," who was the father of William of "Orange," &c.

''A History of St. Mark's Parish''. Baltimore: Innes & Co. Pages 169-70. < [https://archive.org/details/cu31924010323511/page/n187/mode/2up?vie... Archive.Org] >

Francis married Miss Dabney and died 1752. He was the ancestor of Gen. Gaines, John S. Pendleton, Gen. D. Strother (Porte Crayon), Gen. Duff Green, and Capt. French Strother of Rappahannock. William married Mrs. Pannill and was the grandfather of Gen. Z. Taylor.

GEDCOM Note

Excerpt from a letter; Jane Frogue Farmer to Elaine Summers "You asked about the Jimmy Carter Connection. Goes way back - The first John Frogge that I found married Elizabeth Strother in 1738 in Prince Wm. Co. VA. She was an heiress. The Strothers were very wealthy people in those days. Her father Wm. Strother had died and the estate was divided up between the 6 daughters. Jimmy Carter's father's side goes back to one of the brothers of Wm. Strother so we would all have had the same grandfather way back there. We also would have about the same connection with President Zachary Taylor. Governor Charles Robb is a descendent of John Frogge, Jr., who was killed at the batter of Pt. Pleasant in 1774. Robb is married to Lynda Byrd Johnson. He was just recently elected Gov. of Virginia."

References

1. Register of Kentucky State Historical Society, by Kentucky Historical Society. (Publication date 1903). Page 67-68. < Archive.Org >
2. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/156026509/william_dabney_strother
3. https://colonial-settlers-md-va.us/getperson.php?personID=I81353&tr...
4. WikiTree contributors, "William Strother (1726-1808)," WikiTree: The Free Family Tree, (https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Strother-138 : accessed 04 October 2024). cites
   1. Miles, Annie Hawkins, "The Strother Family" Register of Kentucky State Historical Society, Vol. 1, No. 3 (SEPTEMBER, 1903), pp. 69-70, Kentucky Historical Society, JSTOR.org accessed June 7, 2015
   2. Library of Virginia, Lost Records Localities accessed July 20, 2015
   3. Pannill, David H., (Oct., 1897) "The Genealogy of Gen. J. E. B. Stuart and of His Collateral Relations on his Mother's Side--Pannill, Strother, Banks, Bruce, Etc." The William and Mary Quarterly. Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture JSTOR.org accessed 3 October 2016 (Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 113-116).
   4. Railey, William Edward, (1903) "Brief Sketches of the Randolphs and their Connections ..." Register of Kentucky State Historical Society. Archive.org (Vol 16, Citing page 68).
   5. Banks, Ray, (21 June 2015) "Gerard Banks." Compilation Project ... accessed 15 Dec 2016.
   6. Slaughter, Philip, (1877) A History of St. Mark's Parish. Baltimore: Innes & Co. Pages 169-70. < Archive.Org >
5. Crozier, William, (1907) The Buckners of Virginia and the allied families of Strother and Asby. Armstrong. NY: The Genealogical Association, HathiTrust.org (pages 221-232) I also have read this source to be quite unreliable.
6. Jenkins, Orville Boyd, (16 September 2016) William Dabney Strother.
7. Railey, William E., (January 1918) "The Strothers." Register of Kentucky State Historical Society, Vol 16. Kentucky Historical Society JSTOR.ORG (Vol. 16, No. 46, pp. 91, 93-106).
8. Roberts, Gary Boyd, (2009) Ancestors of American Presidents. Boston: NEHGS.
9. Virginia, Orange County Marriage Records, 1757-1938. index and images, FamilySearch (accessed 31 May 2015), William Strother and Anne Kavennaugh, 11 Jun 1775; citing , County Courthouse, Orange; FHL microfilm 33,031.
10. FSFTID 9KFB-K1W.
11. Nicklin, John Bailey Calvert. "The Strother Family," Tyler's Quarterly, v. xi, #2, Oct 1929, pp. 127-9.
12. Owen, Thomas McAdory,. William Strother, of Virginia, and his descendants. Harrisburg, Pa.: Harrisburg Pub. Co., 1898. Pages 43-45. Also shows his death as 1808. Discusses why Wm is not named in Francis Strother's will and provides evidence why he is Francis's son.
13. Genealogies of Virginia Families - From Tyler's Quarterly Historical and Genealogical Magazine. Vol 1. page 385. Also shows 5 Nov 1808 death date in KY.
14. Marriages of Some Virginia Residents 1607-1800. Dorothy F. Wulfeck. Vol 2 I - Z. page 271. Also shows 5 Nov 1808 death date in KY.
15. Name:Wm Strother Probate Date:7 Nov 1808 Probate Place:Woodford, Kentucky, USA Inferred Death Year: Abt 1808 Inferred Death Place:Kentucky, USA Item Description:Administrator and Executor Bonds, 1802-1856 Source: Administrator and Executor Bonds, 1802-1856, of Woodford County [Kentucky]; Author: Kentucky. County Court (Woodford County); Probate Place: Woodford, Kentucky